


Until it Hurts Less

by AmethystAmore



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Boss/Employee Relationship, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Light Dom/sub, Loki and Thor Are Not Related, M/M, Manipulation, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Power Dynamics, References to Depression, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-26
Updated: 2019-11-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:48:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21576319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmethystAmore/pseuds/AmethystAmore
Summary: Thor Borson, born into a legacy of privilege and wealth, has just inherited his father’s multimillion dollar business. While a life built on greed and corruption is not at all what he wants, Thor knows he has no choice. Especially not with his malicious sister threatening to take the company over by force.But for all of his money and connections, Thor is just a broken man trying to drown the grief of loss through the bottle, and suppress the darkest desires of his private life by never getting involved in a serious relationship.Of course it doesn’t help that what he thought to be a drunken one night stand has turned out to be his new secretary.
Relationships: Loki/Thor (Marvel)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 60
Collections: Thorki Big Bang 2019





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Greetings, Readers! I’m happy to post the first chapter of my 2019 Thorki Big Bang! To be quite honest, it’s been a rough year and writing this was a bit of a struggle, but I’m happy that I persevered. 
> 
> I would like to thank the [Thorki Big Bang Mods](%E2%80%9C) for organizing this event and for their support to all the talented writers and artists who participated this year. I would also love to thank the amazingly talented FullBodyColapse for a VERY gorgeous illustration of our boys which will be featured in chapter 2. Look out for that and go check out “FullBodyColapse” on [Twitter](%E2%80%9C) for even more beautiful art!!!
> 
> Without further ado, I present to you Chapter 1 of “Untill it Hurts Less”. I will be trying to post 2 chapters per week so be on the look out for updates. Please enjoy!

When Thor awakens, it’s to the sound of running water from the bathroom followed immediately by a dull throbbing behind his eyes. He squints into the dimness of the hotel room and slowly raises a hand to massage his spinning head. A hangover, definitely, but considering how much he drank the night before and the circumstances that drove him to the bottle in the first place, it’s not the worst he’s ever felt.

It takes him several seconds too long to process that the person who had been occupying the bathroom has emerged and is talking to him. He makes a small grunt in acknowledgment, for lack of anything better to say, but keeps his back to the door and his eyes fixed to the thin sliver of morning light stubbornly peeking from the space where the curtains do not touch. The voice behind him sounds relaxed, untroubled, and so far removed from any of the melancholy and turbulence swirling around in Thor’s mind, he cannot help but envy that peace.

“Thor?”

The sound of his name brings his meandering thoughts more sharply into focus. At last, he dares to turn around and try to glimpse at the man standing in the tiny hall between the bathroom and the closet. It’s still a bit too dark with the curtains closed, and the light from the bathroom only highlights the man’s outline. He’s tall, probably close to Thor’s own impressive height. Slender, but even under the wrinkled white shirt he’s buttoning up, Thor can see the man is fairly muscular. It’s his calm voice, however, that captures Thor’s particular attention. It’s a low, breathy sound that borders between a sigh and a song. It’s absolutely mezomoring.

“I said I should probably be heading out now.”

“Oh…” Thor blinks dumbly at the statement, realizing he missed nearly everything else the man was telling him beforehand, in spite of his soothing voice. He finally nods and winces as he sits up, head still foggy from booze and grief. Losing loved ones had a habit of doing this to him.

“Well, don’t sound  _ too  _ choked up about it, now,” the man says dryly as he moves to retrieve his pants and belt from a spot near the bed.

“Forgive me, I…” Thor’s voice fails him when he suddenly takes notice of the man’s legs. There are bruises blossoming on his thighs, visible even in the nearly lightless room. And more horrifying yet are the two distinct bitmarks; one on his left leg just near his groin, the second on his right below his briefs. 

The man doesn’t seem to notice Thor’s distress as he pulls the garment on and buckles the belt in place. He simply flips his shoulder length hair out of his face as he grabs his suit jacket and says, “I’ll show myself out then.”

It’s in that moment that Thor finally finds his voice, daring to ask the question he’s almost terrified to know the answer to.

“Did I hurt you?”

The man pauses in his movements, the left sleeve of his tux still only halfway up his arm. The bathroom light outlines ink black hair and pale skin. Even without getting a clear look at his face, this person was more than likely Thor’s type. And his types tended to unleash a side to himself in bed that many of Thor’s partners were uneasy with…

The silence sits in the room for an anxious minute before the man finally responds, softly.

“Yes... you did.”

Guilt and shame flush over Thor, making him hang his head in humiliation. Blaming it on the alcohol would make this mess easier to explain, but deep down he knew better. 

“I… I’m so sorry-“

“That hardly meant that I didn’t like it, you know.”

Thor starts at that, more alert than he had felt since he received Heimdall’s phone call about father-

The man walks over to his bed and leans down to peck him against his open mouth, appearing unbothered by Thor’s sour morning breath and rigid body. When he pulls back, Thor can see something like fire dancing behind those light green eyes. 

He wants to burn in them a little longer.

“You… I mean you weren’t-“

The man lays a finger across his lips to silence him, offering a small smirk as he steps back from the bed.

“See you soon, Thor Borson.”

The man waves over his shoulder as he opens the door and walks out into the hotel hallway. Thor tries to sit up to stop him, to ask for his name, but the door shuts and the man is gone, leaving behind the scent of sex and cologne.

He isn’t certain how long he stared at the door before the phone on the nightstand starts to vibrate, with the name Sif appearing. Thor taps the red button to deny the call, pausing briefly to stare at the time. 

It’s 8 am, the earliest Thor’s woken up in months. He has little time to ponder that knowledge before a text appears, this time from Val, telling him to answer Sif’s calls. Another text pops up threatening to break each of his fingers one by one if he didn’t. 

With a frustrated sigh, Thor promptly turns the phone off and slumps back onto the bed, propping himself against the headboard. He sighs again deeply as he ruminates over the man’s words.

_ That hardly meant that I didn’t like it. _

Both of his hands go up to cover his face as a twinge of arousal surges through him.

“Definitely my type then…” Thor muses aloud, feeling disgusted with himself after he’s spoken. This just isn’t the time to be thinking about  _ that _ problem. He has more pressing matters at hand.

He sits in bed for longer than he should before he finally drags himself up to use the shower, stepping over the black suit crumbled on the floor from his father’s funeral.

***

In the city that never sleeps, the most powerful people are aligned with Wallstreet eilletes and owners of massive global corporations. Members of that select group have access to everything and anything the world has to offer.

The Borsons, are a part of that circle.

The golden tower of  _ Asgard Incorporated _ sits but a block away from the New York Stock Exchange building, and stands a few stories higher than Trump Tower, something it’s owner still gripes about on twitter from his current location in the US capital. There are a hoard of reporters waiting outside of it as Thor exits his black Mercedes-Benz, dressed in a grey suit and dark sunglasses. He ignores the menagerie of questions being hurled his way as he enters the lobby and greats the receptionist working behind the desk.

In his younger years, Thor was always impressed with the imposing symbol of power and wealth his grandfather had erected in the states, though the gold plating and sloping arches were his father’s doing. What Bor had created nearly 80 years ago, Odin had only enriched from the unique architectural features on its exterior, down to the pearlescent buttons within the elevators. Thor presses one of those buttons as he steps inside the private elevator that leads to the 60th floor, then steps back and stares blankly at mirrored walls. 

On his left stands his former college friend and current bodyguard, Brunhilde Kyrie, though he refers to her as Val. It was short for Valkyrie, a nickname born from a spin on her last name. She had earned it from her days playing lacrosse, charging at women taller and bulkier than herself and still managing to knock them down. Thor had been on the receiving end of her surprising strength once or twice himself during the occasional football game with his friends. He almost smiles to himself, recalling the first time it happened, how shocked he had been at being bested at his own sport. The only person who managed to tackle Val back was his childhood friend, Sif. The two of them have been dating since.

The ride up the elevator is quiet, though. Unusually so, since usually Thor would normally be pestering his friend and employee about hating board meetings and plotting ways to get out of them, and Val wouldacild him playfully in return. He still despised meetings with company managers and stockholders, but there was no getting out of this one, and they both knew it. It also didn’t help that she was probably still angry at him for not answering his phone last week…

The doors of the elevator part revealing a long hallway which ended with a tall wooden door. Thor steps out first and walks directly towards it. He’s halfway down the hall before he realizes Val hasn’t followed him, and turns to ask her why-

“Run along, your highness,” Val says in a bored tone, waving her hand in a shooing motion. “Your public awaits you.”

“You’re not coming, too?” Thor frowns, confused. 

“I am,” she responds with a shrug. “But first I have an errand to run.”

He is about to inquire further before Val waves, letting the doors to the elevator shut, leaving Thor to blink incredulously in her wake.

“Great…” Thor mutters as he spins on one foot and heads back down the hall. His hand doesn’t even grasp the door handle before it’s opening for him. 

Waiting for him on the other side is his family’s lawyer, Heimdall Gates, and two sizable stacks of paper sitting on the office’s long, and presently empty conference table. The other man’s posture reflects his fatigue while his face remains decidedly neutral as he inclines his head at Thor in greeting.

“Thor,” Heimdall welcomes stoically from the entrance, gesturing for him to step inside. “Please have a seat.”

Thor nods, moving to the chair at the end of the long conference table and sitting down with a heavy sigh. “Heimdall. I’d say ‘it’s good to see you,’ but under the circumstances…”

Heimdall holds up a hand and shakes his head, “Understandable. And for both of our sakes, I’ll try to make this as brief as humanly possible.”

“I doubt ‘brief’ will be any less than an hour or two judging buy all that,” Thor says skeptically, eyeing the stacks of documents again.

A ghost of a smile appears in Heimdall’s face. “I know sitting still for long periods of time and listening to legal jargon was never your favorite past time.”

“Is it anyone’s? “ Thor asks with an almost smile of his own.

“Not to my knowledge.”

“Well then… let’s get this over with,” Thor replies, shifting in his seat to find a more comfortable position as the lawyer proceeds.

Heimdall kept as true to his word as he could, laying out legal documents, explaining their various purposes as quickly and efficiently as he was able. There were papers upon papers of need of signatures, and Thor’s hand was barely halfway through completing them when his hand started to cramp. The whole business felt rather like filling out paperwork at the doctor’s office, and even with Heimdall’s very deliberate attempt to keep the language as simple as possible, Thor found his mind drifting from boredom and disinterest. He couldn’t help but groan in relief and rub at his hand when the lawyer took the last of the documents and locked them into his briefcase with a decisive click.

“And with that, you are now officially and legally the sole owner of Asgard Incorporated,” Heimdall says. “Any questions?”

“Nope,” Thor answers with an elated breath. “Nothing at all.”

Heimdall nods, and sets aside his case as he regards Thor. “You’ll make a fine owner, Thor. Your father wouldn’t have entrusted this to you if he didn’t believe that to be true.”

“Yeah… We’ll see, I suppose,” Thor says with a stretch and a yawn. “So… I take it that that covers everything.”

“Actually, there is one more thing,” Heimdall says carefully. Thor doesn’t like the look on his face. Heimdal hardly wears his emotions on his sleeve, but Thor’s one of the few people to have known him long enough to recognize when the lawyer is concerned.

“O...kay?” Thor says slowly, raising a brow as he waits for Heimdall to explain.

“You haven’t been introduced to your secretary yet…”

Thor stares, “And? You’re kind of making it seem like this is a bad thing.”

“It shouldn’t be,” sighs Heimdall , looking as though what he’s about to say physically pains him. “However-”

At that moment, the door to the conference room opens, and Val walks in… followed by the absolute last person Thor expected to see.

Though he hadn’t gotten the best look at him last week in his inebriated and grief ridden state, there was no mistaking it; it was the man from the hotel, the one Thor had slept with the night after the funeral. His mouth fell open in shock as he stared at a now visibly uncomfortable Heimdall.

“Thor, allow me to introduce you to Loki Laufeyson… though I believe you’ve already met.”

The man-  _ Loki _ stands at the other side of the conference room, adjusting his black rimmed glasses before offering Thor a little wave with his fingers and a thin smile.

“Surprise.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to chapter 2, lovely readers! And please check out the lovely accompanying art created by the immensely talented and sweet FullBody Collapse! Find it [here](https://mobile.twitter.com/fulbodycollapse/status/1200544276960157697/photo/1)!

If Loki is feeling half the horror and scandal Thor is at this very moment, he has a damn near perfect poker face. He simply smiles, straightening his own tie in as Thor stares aghast at him. It’s Val who clears the silence first, looking between the two with a single brow raised.

“Am I missing something here?” she asks, glancing over at Heimdall, who side eyes Loki as the secretary speaks.

“We met at the late Mr. Borson’s funeral,” Loki says crisply, before adding with an almost too angelic look. “And the present Mr. Borson _may_ have had a tad too much to drink and ended up kissing me.”

Thor shuts his eyes and wills himself to disappear from this moment. He only opens them at the sound of Heimdall coughing.

“And it's a good thing that was all that had happened,” says the lawyer, glancing between the two with a frown. “I imagine this is awkward for all of us, but nevertheless, what’s done is done.”

“I’m sorry,” Thor stands refusing to make eye contact with Loki as he frowns at Heimdall. “I’m confused… what do you mean by ‘all that happened-‘?”

“Oh, I told Mr. Gates everything, naturally,” Loki interjects with another far from convincing grin. “After the incident at the bar, you sort of fell into my lap, fast asleep. And since I was leaving anyway, I took the liberty of calling a cab and taking you back to your hotel.”

“And how did you even know where he was staying,” Val asks suspiciously, tilting her head.

“Mr. Borson told me,” says Loki, before adding. “After I shook him awake, of course. As fortune would have it, it happened to be at the same Hilton I had stayed at.”

“Oh yeah… _real_ fortunate,” Val says staring back at him with an expression that said she didn’t buy it at all, and Thor, once again, wishes himself gone from this room.

“As I said before,” Heimdall cuts in, grabbing his briefcase from the table and adjusting his tie. “What’s done is done. Grief can drive people to do many irrational things. Thankfully, in our case, a drunken kiss with a staff worker isn’t the worst that could have happened.”

Thor’s mind is reeling as he processes this information. No one knew, apart from himself and Loki, and possibly, given how she’s glaring hard at the bespectacled man, Val. Aside from that, no one else had an inkling of what had transpired. Thor opens his mouth to probe into the matter more before Heimdall’s phone starts to ring.

“And that would be my next appointment,” the man says inclining his head in goodbye. “Thor, we will talk soon. Ms. Kyrie… Mr. Laufeyson.” 

And with that the lawyer takes his leave, moving past Val and Loki and shutting the door behind him. Val turns to give Thor a long look.

“Are we heading out now?”

“In a minute, Thor says carefully, trying not to look too uncomfortable as he glances over to Loki. “But first I would like a moment with Mr. Laufeyson. Alone.”

“Five minutes,” Val says with another final glance at Loki. “And I’m going to keep count.”

She steps outside and slams the door behind her, causing Thor to flinch. 

_Yep,_ he thinks to himself. _She definitely knows._

“You wanted to say something to me, Sir?” Loki inquires, pulling Thor from his thoughts with that alluringly, honey sweet voice of his. 

“You lied to Heimdall about us,” Thor says sharply, watching as Loki blinks back at him. 

“I didn’t lie,” Loki says evenly as Thor stares him down. “I merely omitted the details of what happened after we made it back to your room.”

“He seems to think _nothing_ happened between us,” Thor says gritting his teeth and rolling his shoulders to calm himself, to keep from yelling or worse lowering his voice to something more commanding. From the little he can recall about that night of the funeral, Loki seemed to have responded well to _that_ voice… 

Loki takes a step forward, boldly and purposefully licking at his lips in a way that Thor’s eyes can’t help but follow. “Let him think whatever he wants. It’s no one’s business but our own.”

“And it was a one time thing,” Thor says sternly, folding his arms. “I’m your boss, now. It’s not happening again.” 

“As you wish,” Loki says with a shrug.

“I mean it Mr. Laufyson-“

“Loki,” says the slightly shorter man with a tut. “Your father addressed me as such, and I would prefer you did as well.”

“Oh, so did you sleep with my father, too?” Thor throws back, before he catches look Loki gives him and immediately softens his tone. “I… I’m sorry.”

“You should be,” Loki replies icily, the taunting gone in an instant. “But no. I’m not accustomed to sleeping with my bosses. You would be the first.”

“I’m honored,” Thor says flatly, before turning away and running his fingers through his short hair. “Look… I don’t want things to be weird between us. We’ve clearly started out on the wrong foot, but perhaps we could just… forget everything previous to this moment and start over?”

Loki’s face loses some of its edge, his shoulders relaxing and releasing the tension. Then he holds out his hand.

“Loki Laufeyson. It’s a pleasure to formally make your acquaintance, Thor Borson.”

Thor takes the hand in a firm grasp and nods once, feeling himself unconsciously lean closer. “It’s Mr. Borson, Loki.”

The cheek in Loki’s tone returns to hit Thor full force when the secretary slides his hand away and readjusts his glasses.

“I’m at your complete command, _Mr._ Borson.”

It’s at that very moment that the door flies open again and Val reappears, a hand on her hip. “Time’s up.”

Thor shakes his head and hastily makes for the door, brushing past Loki as he leaves. 

“Let’s go,” Thor mutters to Val.

“See you tomorrow, Sir,” Loki calls pleasantly behind him.

That night Thor sits idly on the couch of his luxury Manhattan apartment with a beer in one hand, his cock in the other, and the memory of Loki calling him by his last name in that hypnotic voice as Thor cums.

***

Working in an office setting is stifling, as Thor soon discovers. It hardly seems to matter if one works in a cubicle or in a private room, it’s all terribly tedious business. The paperwork alone would be enough to put him on edge, but it's meetings and phone calls that Thor finds most unbearable. Socializing will people came naturally to him. Schmoozing with elitist pricks did not. He was quick to learn that alcohol made these conversations _so_ much more bearable.

He finally just gets off the phone with one such elite and is starting to type out a memo just as the intercom beeps for his attention, the red button blinking obnoxiously under his glare.

Reluctantly, Thor hits the com with his free hand, still typing with the other, and grumbles. “Yes?”

“Mr. Borson,” Loki’s voice filters through, for once sounding less mischievous and surprisingly apprehensive. “You have a visitor.”

Thor continues to type as he says, “Send my apologies and reschedule them for tomorrow.”

Loki’s voice sounds even less composed as he responds, “... It’s your sister, Sir.”

The typing ceases in an instant. Then Thor, growls under his breath before pressing the button a final time. “Tell her to go to Hel.”

Suddenly he hears the door to his office slam open and Loki’s muffled protests in the background.

“Now don’t you look awfully comfortable sitting in _my_ seat.”

Thor looks up immediately at the sound of that familiar silken alto and beholds the she-demon herself. 

Hela looks remarkably unperturbed for some one who was currently fighting a legal battle to get her pointed, manicured nails in his father’s estate. Last time Thor had seen her was two months ago when she tried to make a spiteful speech at the restaurant after the funeral. She had to be restrained and escorted out by Val, an incredible feat considering how vicious Hela was that day. She regards her half brother with a smile that spells trouble for anyone she directs it towards. Thor remains unimpressed.

“Surprised to see me?”

“Surprised it took you so long,” Thor retorts before returning his gaze to his laptop. “But now really isn’t the time.”

“On the contrary, little brother,” Hela drawls, sashaying further into the office, her long black trench coat billowing behind her like a cape. “Now is the _perfect_ time for us to catch up. A warm family reunion, if you will.”

“Well if that’s all you wanted, you had ample time to try at father’s funeral,” Thor says blankly, still keeping his attention deliberately away from his sister. “Or you _did_ before you decided to throw a temper tantrum.”

“So drab,” Hela sighs, ignoring everything Thor had said, perching herself upon the desk without care and nearly knocking his paperweight off the edge. “At least Father has some taste. You honestly thought red and gold would suit the executive office of a billion dollar company?”

Thor doesn’t respond to that, fingers typing furiously on his laptop. “What do you want, Hela?”

“Oh it’s so simple, even _you_ should have guessed it,” Hela replies idly holding out her hand so she could examine her nails. 

With a sigh, Thor shuts his computer and leans back into the chair with a frown. “I have a pretty good idea, yes. But I’d prefer to hear it from you.”

The hand Hela’s been pretending to admire falls to her lap, her gaze sliding over Thor, all pretense of pleasantness gone.

“I want. My. Company,”She says slowly, voice practically a growl. 

“Well, I’m afraid that’s just not possible,” Thor shrugs. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’d _love_ for someone else to run this place, but it can’t be you. You’re just…well, you’re the _worst_.”

“You think you’ve won, don’t you?” Hela sneers. “You always were a cocky little shit.”

“I think this conversation is over,” says Thor, leaning over to press his security button. “Brunnhilde will show you out. If you have anymore questions, Heimdall will be happy to answer them for you.”

Hela stands up from the desk as Val enters the office and smiles tightly at the taller woman. “Right this way, Ms. Borson. And please come quietly. We don’t want to wrinkle that _expensive_ coat of yours do we?”

Hela narrows her eyes at her, before scoffing and whipping around to address Thor one last time. “This isn’t over, brother darling.”

“According to father’s will it is,” Thor practically sing songs back to her, waving as she spins on her knee high boots and storms past Val. “Don’t let the revolving doors hit you on the way out!”

A hand reappears in the doorway with a single fingered salute before disappearing. Thor chuckles and shakes his head in aggravation, sighing and slumping into his seat. It doesn’t take very long before the door shuts again and he looks up to find Val has returned.

“Well,” Thor says pleasantly. “That went better than I expected.”

Val doesn’t answer him, but Thor can see from the way she taps her fingers over her folded arms that she has plenty on her mind.

“What is it?” asks Thor reluctantly.

“Heimdall called,” she starts. “He said something about checking your finances.”

Thor frowns at that. “Why? What’s going on?”

“Apparently… there seems to be some money missing.”

“I just spent a good chunk refurbishing the office,” Thor says lightly. “Cost more than I expected.”

“To the tune of nearly 1.5 million dollars?” Val deadpans.

Thor freezes. “No...”

Val raises a bow, waiting until Thor lets out a shaky sigh.

“Ask Sif to look into it. Maybe she has another contact in the banks that knows what's happening.”

Once more, Val doesn’t say anything and the lack of any response to his request makes him eye her warily. 

“Alright, talk.”

“Excuse me?” Val glares.

“You clearly have more to say, so let’s hear it.”

“...You want my professional opinion as your bodyguard, or can I just say what I’m really thinking?” Val wonders, face relaxing a little, but still stern.

“What’s the difference? You never hold back even when you’re being professional.”

There is only a brief pause before Val huffs. “When was the last time you slept?”

Thor stares at her. “Ermmm… Last night?”

“Let me rephrase that,” Val waves him off, stepping closer. “When was the last time you slept _without_ having a drink to help you pass out?”

He doesn’t have an answer for that, and apparently that’s all Val needed to know. She opens her mouth in a silent “oh” and laughs humorously as his gaze hardens.

“I like to have a drink or two before bed, what’s your point?”

“My point, _boss,_ ” Val seethes. “Is that it isn’t just a bottle or two or even three a night. It’s every time you don’t know how to handle shit that gets thrown your way. Believe me I know the signs.”

“There are no signs, Val,” Thor shoots back, agitated from being put on the spot. “I’m fine.”

“Bullshit, Thor!” snaps Val, having finally reached the end of her patience. “You haven’t been _fine_ for a long time. You’ve just found a better way to mask it. But sooner or later, it’s going to slip. You need help.”

“What makes you think that?” Thor pushes spreading his arms out in a gesture of annoyance. “I just handled that monstrous half sister of mine pretty well, don’t you think? Plus I’ve been running this company for the last month and a half and nothing’s caught on fire yet.”

Val says nothing. She instead walks directly to the trash can beside his desk, lifting from it a large, empty bottle of vodka. She shakes it once as she stares Thor down furiously.

And the lack of any real scolding stings more than any words she could say, especially as she drops the bottle back into the bin. Thor rubs at his neck. “Look, Val, I-“

“Save it for Sif and Bruce,” she cuts off. “I’m not allowed to judge you. Not when it comes to this. But I _am_ , however, going to kick your ass to kingdom come if you don’t call your friends and at least let them know you’re alive.”

Thor’s mouth automatically shuts at that, his eyes falling to the ground as Val leans over him to place a strong hand on his shoulder. She grips it and shakes him once.

“We’re all worried about you, ok? Please… don’t shut out the living while mourning the dead, Thor,” she says quietly. “I’ve been there. It’s a shitty place to be.”

She doesn’t wait for an answer as she straightens herself up and makes for the door, pausing as she inhaled, then softly speaks.

“You should try another outlet for your stress.”

“I play video games with Korg on the weekends,” Thor says dully, without looking up.

“I meant something a little more intimate.”

“ _No_ ,” Thor says sharply, now sitting up and glowering. 

“Thor-“

“You’ve talked to Sif about this haven’t you?”

Val gives him a look before rolling her eyes, “Listen, everyone has their own… preferences. You shouldn’t try and suppress yours.”

“If you did talk about this with your girlfriend, you’d know that I have to,” says Thor darkly.

Val sighs. Then without another word, she shuts the door.

The quiet of the space around him begins to eat away at Thor’s better judgement. His hand reaches to open the desk draw to the right where a bottle of whisky is shoved under some files, but hesitates. Guilt and temporary resolve help him to shut the drawer firmly and rest his head in his hands before lack of a decent night’s rest finally catches up t

***

“Mr. Borson? … Sir?”

Thor’s eyes open to the sight of Loki standing beside him at his desk, face leaning close to his as his hand gently shakes his boss’s arm. Thor blinks once, twice, and then he yawns around the question that first pops into his mind, “How long was I out for?”

Loki removes his hand from Thor’s arm and worries his lower lip as he ponders the answer. “I’m not exactly certain… But it wasn’t long after your meeting with Ms. Borson. About an hour or so.”

“So it’s only…” Thor glances at the clock in the corner of the room. “4:15.”

“Yes,” Loki says, still looking uncharacteristically uncomfortable. “But perhaps you might consider leaving early? You look rather pale.”

“...Damn it all,” Thor mumbles as he lifts his head off of the desk and rubs his eyes. His conversation with Val still lingers in the back of his mind. He really should leave early and just call his friends when he gets home.

“... I’m sorry,” Loki says suddenly, making Thor pause in his motions and glance curiously at him.

“For what?” 

“I should have made more of an effort to stop her,” Loki explains. There is no hint of mischief in his eyes, no tricks. The secretary actually looks genuinely apologetic and it makes Thor release a breath he wasn’t away he was holding.

“Don’t be,” Thor says gruffly, raising his eyes to the ceiling. “She probably would have stabbed you in the eye had you attempt to get in the way. She almost did that to me when I was in high school.”

That startles a laugh out of Loki and Thor feels something warm bloom in his own chest hearing it. When he finishes chuckling, Loki clears his throat. “In all seriousness, I’ll strive not to let it happen in the future.”

“See to it that you do,” Thor says in a mock stern voice, his mouth almost tilting up into a smile. “I’d have to punish you if you did so again.”

Loki stares at him a moment while Thor’s smile drops as the realization of what he just said hits him. “I-I… Forget I said that. That came out wrong. Just uh… just do your best.”

“And what would you do to me if I didn’t do my best?” Loki asks coyly.

Thor freezes at that, and stares hard at the other man before him. Loki’s body language shifts back into teasing and flirty. He leans over Thor’s desk with the grace of a cat and Thor feels an urge to pull him over it entirely and strip him bear. Loki prods again, noticing and delighting in Thor’s inner distress.

“What sort of punishment would you deliver, Mr. Borson?”

Thor suddenly sees the challenge there and stops squirming. Loki is testing him, he realizes. These past few weeks they’ve been working together, Loki has been subtly and deliberately trying to rattle his boss. He _wants_ Thor to break, wants him to lose his cool and fall into Loki’s trap. 

It’s a game and Thor suddenly feels his stubborn and competitive side rear back up in response. He’ll be damned if he lets his employee wear him down so easily.

“Do you want to find out now?” he asks lowly, playing along with Loki. The other gives him a Cheshire smirk as Thor reaches into his desk. “Cause I have a few things here that need attending to…”

“Oh do you?” Loki coos, leaning closer until Thor pulls out a stack of files and drops them on the desk loud enough to make Loki jump back in surprise. He stares at pile before him like he doesn’t understand what just happened. “Sir?”

Thor stands up and walks around the desk, stopping at Loki’s side to breath in his ear.

“Finish these reports. All of them. And don’t even _think_ about leaving that little office of yours until you do,” Thor smirks, patting a visibly shocked Loki once hard on the back as he grabs his keys and coat, and strolls out the door.

When he comes back to work the next morning, the papers are stacked on the opposite end of the desk along with a note. In Loki’s perfect handwriting it simply says the following:

_Well played, Mr. Borson._


	3. Update

Hi everyone. I wanted to make this post because I feel it’s not fair to keep everyone waiting on something that may not come. 

This story is technically completed in my docs, but the final product is not something I feel completely satisfied with. I had every intention of fixing that as I edited it back in the fall, but some major life events occurred and threw all those plans out the window. I came back to it sometime in late February when life seemed to settle more. Then, of course, Corona became our reality and as an essential worker, I didn’t get to stay home and write as I wished I could. 

Now it’s months later, and truth be told, I’ve lost a lot of the interest I had in the Marvel fandom for the time being. That includes this pairing. Therefore, I am choosing to put this project on hiatus indefinitely rather than JKR it and spit out something that neither I or my readers will be happy with.

I apologize to everyone who was following this, and I am disappointed that I couldn’t compete this for the Thorki Big Bang last year as I had hoped. Had things not gotten so overwhelming in my personal life, I would have been able to straighten out the flaws in the unposted chapters, but as the song “Complicated” says “Life’s like this.” (Dear lord I gave my age away with that one.) Perhaps someday I’ll find the inspiration to come back and give this a proper ending. For now, stay safe during these trying times everyone. And thank you Thorki fandom for all the good times. And in the words of Bill and Ted, be excellent to each other and party on, dudes.

**Author's Note:**

> Please feel free to leave a comment or critic. I appreciate any feedback so long as it’s constructive!


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